The UK’s exit from the European Union has the potential to decimate Irish agriculture and Europe must protect Ireland’s farmers, IFA president Joe Healy has said.

Healy was addressing delegates at the IFA’s Brexit event in Goffs, Co Kildare on Monday. Healy said a hard Brexit with the enforcement of World Trade Organisation (WTO) tariffs would have disastrous consequences for all farming sectors.

“Farming would be devastated, with average incomes falling by 26%,” Healy told the some 600 attendees at the event.

“Cattle farm incomes would be worst hit, dropping by a massive 37%. That would devastate suckler beef production in Ireland,” he added.

Healy said as part of the Brexit talks, the IFA has three key priorities to help “safeguard” Irish agriculture:

  • the closest possible trading relationship between the EU and the UK
  • the value of the UK market must be maintained
  • and a fully-funded CAP must be secured.

    • Healy then turned his attention to keynote speaker EU Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan.

    “This is about Europe showing its commitment to Irish farming. It’s about jobs. It’s about rural communities. It’s about farm families. It is about you (Commissioner Hogan) and your team protecting Irish and European farmers,” he said.

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